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Fort Royal Last Year

Councillor leads bid to restore historic park

A COUNCILLOR is spearheading an appeal to breathe new life into an historic Worcester park which is at the very heart of the city's rich Civil War history.
Coun Jabba Riaz has joined forces with the Battle of Worcester Society to campaign for major investment in Fort Royal Park off Wylds Lane, which has suffered in recent years due to a lack of investment.
The park is situated on one of the key sites of the Battle of Worcester in 1651 - Fort Royal Hill - where Royalist soldiers built a fort to defend the city from the attack of Oliver Cromwell's Parliamentarians.
It is also the place where two former American Presidents John Adams and Thomas Jefferson met in 1786 to look out over the city which they considered to be one of the key battlegrounds for democracy.
But despite its great history Fort Royal Park has missed out on the kind of investment which has seen other city parks like Gheluvelt and Cripplegate flourish. It has led to complaints from some residents that the park's entrance now looks like it has been bombed, while the ageing play area has also attracted criticism.
The concerns have prompted Coun Riaz to call on the city council to unite with bodies like English Heritage and restore the park to its former glory. Coun Riaz said: "Considering the well known reputation of the fort there has been a considerable lack of investment in the park over the years. Although it has been kept immaculately clean by the council wardens, signs of wear and tear are really showing. Most disappointingly the residents feel that there is no real symbol or monument to mark those that lost their lives so that we could enjoy freedom and democracy."
His sentiments were echoed by Ben Humphrey, from the Battle of Worcester Society, who is busy organising a series of high-profile activities to mark the 360th anniversary of the Battle of Worcester in September.
"The fact of the matter is two US presidents stood on top of Fort Royal Hill and looked out over Worcester because they felt it was the birthplace of democracy," he said. "The reason we all have a vote is strongly linked to the Battle of Worcester. It is a massive piece of our national heritage but we are not doing any where near enough to promote it."
Coun Roger Knight, deputy leader of the city council, confirmed Coun Riaz had been involved in discussions with the council about possible enhancements to Fort Royal Park.
"These are being considered together with a number of projects in other areas," he added.

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